


How to become siblings

by odamaebrown



Category: The X-Files
Genre: AU, Cannon compliant, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-10-24
Updated: 2017-05-20
Packaged: 2018-08-24 11:26:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,732
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8370430
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/odamaebrown/pseuds/odamaebrown
Summary: William never feels alone





	1. Imaginary sister

Mrs. Van de Kamp lay down to sleep next to her husband. He says: ‘’you’re a good mother’’ patting her face. She smiles. 

‘’He is a good boy. Have you noticed how good he is? He rarely cries during the night, only when he feels wet. He is never scare or feels alone, like others babies. Sometimes, I think he has a Guardian Angel that makes him feel safe, do you think he has an Angel protecting him because her mother didn’t want him?’’.

Her husband holds her with love: ‘’He has, now, the best Mom he could dream and he is the real and only Angel in this house’’.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------

William is never scare.  
He cannot remember it but he has never been alone because one day, his father, Mulder, left; and a little girl decided looking after him. 

The first time that she appeared, her mother, Dana, was taking a shower and the window in William’s bedroom was open, so an airflow closed the door violently and that scared him. 

He started to cry and Dana could not listen him, with the water running and the door closed.

The little girl appeared next to his baby coat and took his hand, speaking to him softly:

‘’Hey, William, I am here with you. Don’t be scare! Don’t be scare!’’. She says that, cradling the baby and smiling to him.

When Dana finished, she saw the door closed and, alarmed, walk in to the room. The baby was smiling, with his arms raised like if he wanted to be hold. 

‘’My baby’’ Dana said, smiling to him ‘’I thought you were scare and look how happy you are!’’.

William giggled when he saw his mother, glad. She hold him in her arms and took him to the kitchen with her.

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------

He went to live to a farm when his mother Dana gave him up and he felt sad there the first days. 

Unrecognizable faces; a baby coat that was not his; a food with different taste and voices singing that he could not recognize. When strange hands hold him and changed his clothes. When he couldn’t recognize the smell of the woman that looked at him with that eyes, plenty of love.

The only person that was still there with him was the little girl. 

She was every nap next to his baby coat, taking care of him. He liked to listen her voice, even when he did not understand yet what she was speaking about:

‘’William… Hello little William…Hey...Hey’’ and the little girl cares his belly until he fell asleep. It was good for him that she was there those days, when he could not understand why everything was so different and why the red haired woman that smelled so well never went to pick him up.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

One day, William says his first word :  
"Mom’’ and Mrs. Van de Kamp let tears of happiness drifting on her face: God did not want give her the gift of to be a mother. She was born without that organs that make you become a mother. But she was Mother now, because the person she loved most called her Mom.

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mr. Van de Kamp waits.   
He wants to listen the magic word: ‘’Dad’’. The baby already can say ‘’Mom’’. His son can say Mom and he wants to be his second word. 

For that reason, when William looks next to his baby coat and starts scream, glad and happy ‘’Ily’’, ‘’Ily’’, Ily’’…their parent do not understand what he says.

The little girl next to his baby coat is laughing because she recognizes her name and that makes her happy:

‘’William…That’s my name! Emily! Emily!’’. She screams jumping, excited because she is listen her name on his little mouth. Every time that she jumps, screaming her name, William repeats ‘’Ily! Ily!’’.

Mr. Van de Kamp is not disappointed. He is wondering what ‘’Ily’’ means to his son.

A few days after, William says ‘’Dad’’ and Mr. Van de Kamp squeezes her wife’s hand.

How a single word can make him so happy? 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

It is a rainy Saturday and William is having his breakfast in front of the TV. Mom is in the kitchen, cooking cookies: Christmas is coming. 

Dad is with him, helping him with the spoon, because it is not easy for him to manage to take, together, the cereals and the milk.

Emily is next to him. They are watching cartoons and some kids appear in the TV, they are going to sing something. The kids starts: 

‘'Singin' joy to the world All the boys and girls now Joy to the fishes in the deep blue sea Joy to you and me’'

William opens his eyes. He remembers something…that song…

Mr. Van de Kamp looks at the TV and at his son again and says, smiling:

‘’You like the song, William?’’.

William nods and looks at Emily. 

She smiles.

She has notices that he has remembered but he doesn’t know what.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

‘’Emily?’’ he is on the bed, tired after a day playing with his toys and helping Mom to cook bread.  
He is already three years old, ‘’A big little man’’ Dad says.

Emily is on the bed with him. She whispers:

‘’You ok?’’.

William nods. ‘’You know that song?’’.

‘’Yes, it’s the song that Mom Dana song for you when you were with her’’.

William nods.

He has grown up listening Emily speaks about Mom Dana and Dad Mulder. 

He knows they both love him that much that they were worried for him and they gave him to the Van de Kamp because they could not keep him safe from the bad people. 

He is glad because he has two fathers and two mothers, like Emily, his sister that nobody can see.

‘’I want for Christmas a doll with red hair like Mom Dana’’ William says.

Emily laughs.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

The next day, Mrs. Van de Kamp tells William that he does not need to wait until Christmas for a rag doll with red hair, so she starts to sews quickly, experienced, for him.

He wants to sleep with his Mom Dana but he cannot say it to anybody because Emily thinks they can be sad if he does it. 

Mrs. Van de Kamp sews a small doll that wears a black dress because Emily said to William that Mom Dana always wears black dress and William told her Mom he wants the doll with a black dress. 

Mrs. Van de Kamp takes two green buttons and William says:

‘’Mom, please, I want my doll with blue eyes’’.

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

William speaks with his sister every night.

‘’Emily?’’ He asks and waits until she answers. He cannot see her until she answers.

‘’William, I am here’’ She always speaks softly to him.

‘’My Dad Mulder is you Dad too?’’ He asks.

‘’I don’t know…’’ She bites her lips ‘’I think so, because he was with Mom Dana all the time when I was sick. He has to be my Dad too, I think’’.

‘’Tell me things about him’’.

‘’He is veeeery veeeery veeery tall and he knows how to make Potato’s face’’.

The next day, William asks her Dad how to make Potato’s face and they play together until William runs to her mother: 

‘’Mom, look my Potato’s face!’’.

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Some kids in the town have siblings and they are always fighting. Some kids do not have and they would like to have them. 

William is the luckiest boy. 

He has a secret sister that only he can see and she looks after him because Mom Dana looked after her when she was sick in the Hospital. Now, Emily wants to takes care of William because Mom Dana cannot; she has a jewel in her neck and the bad people can connect their phones to her jewel and find her, so she cannot live with William. 

But Emily is the best sister in the World because she spend the nights looking after him and he will never have any monster walk in to his room. 

\------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

William has a new gift: 25 brilliants pencils in a box. He thinks he has never seen so many colours. He is going to draw his family as a gift for his Mom: Mr and Mrs Van de Kamp and himself. 

He is sure his mother will set up the picture at the fridge, where she set up the important things, like dentist appointment or the shopping list. 

He asks his sister about Mom Dana and Dad Mulder and he draw them with Emily and himself. 

This one is important only for him and he hides it in his secret box under his bed. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Everybody knows already that he has an imaginary friend: Emily. He says "sister". 

The pediatrician, Dr. Page, says is fine. It's absolutely normal at his age. 

He can play now with her around the whole house. 

But he cannot speak about Mom Dana and Dad Mulder because Emily told him not to do it. He cannot wait but he does it. 

Do their parents know about them?. 

\-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Mrs. Van de Kamp finds his secret box cleaning and looks inside: some stones, some sweets, some pictures.. . 

One of them is a family that she does not remember to see in the Town: a small red hair woman, a tall man, a blonde little girl and a boy. 

She asks to William about them. 

He is embarrassed and a bit upset: it's his secret box. 

He says: "My friend's family, Mom". 

"Emily? " She is puzzled. 

" Emily. This is her second mother and her second father". He says, pointing the figures. 

Mrs Van de Kamp freezes. 

"Honey, we can have only one father and one mother". She says quiet. 

"No, Mom. Sometimes your first parents die or they have to give their kids to someone because they cannot take care of them. But they always love them". 

Mrs. Van de Kamp feels panick in every single muscle. 

She just hope William has not listened about his adoption in the town yet.

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Dad" he asks to his father "if bad people put a jewel in the neck of a woman and they can know all the time where she is, what is the name of the job that a person has to have for take the jewel out and save her?". 

Mr Van de Kamp opens his eyes surprised. 

"William, I-I don't know. I think... Scientist or... or engineer". 

William smiles. 

That night, when his mother gives a good night kiss he says her:

"Mom, I'm going to be an scientist".

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Emily" he says. They are playing outside, next to a door where Mrs. Van de Kamp signs every year how tall William is growing up. 

"Why can't you grow up? I'm taller than you now". 

She looks surprised.   
"I don't know. Maybe because I was very sick". 

He notices that she looks sad and says:

"No worries, you will grow up soon and everyone will see you". 

The both laugh. 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

"Mom" he starts while he is helping to his mother to set up the table for dinner :

"Emily wants a book for Christmas," Moby Dick". 

Mrs Van de Kamp smiles and tries to look serious:

"I thought you only wanted a bike this year". 

"Yes" he says like if it were something so obvious "the book is for Emily". 

Mrs. Van de Kamp smiles "Let Santa knows, honey". 

Emily wants “Moby Dick" because Mom Dana read it for her when she was sick. 

In Christmas Eve, Mr Van de Kamp reads the book for William and he is happy because his sister is next to him listening. 

\----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

‘’Emily?’’ William is already five but he cannot sleep. He is four years old and he is worried.

‘’Are you ok, William?’’

‘’Emily’’ he tries to content his tears ‘’I miss Mom Dana and Dad Mulder. I don’t remember them and…’’ He sobs ‘’ I love my Mom and my Dad more than I love Mom Dana and Dad Mulder. I’m very bad boy, because Mom Dana and Dad Mulder are good'’.

Emily sits next to him on the bed. She understands him.

‘’I loved more my Mom than Mom Dana too’’. She says whispering ‘’I was with my Mom more time but…William, I think Mom Dana is not angry if we love more to the others. She loves us anyway’’.

But William feels guilty because he loves more his mother than Mom Dana and his father more than his Dad Mulder and he feels he should loves then same.

‘’William’’ Emily says softly ‘’don’t cry, please’’.

He finally falls asleep with his face plenty of dry tears and holding Emily’s hand.

 

To be continued


	2. Real friends

William gets an amazing gift for his Birthday: a horse. It is the most beautiful and big and quick horse in the whole World and it is his. Well, William is already 6 years old and he knows that it is not a horse; it is a pony, but he does not care. He looks at it him- amazed and speechless, and Dad is showing him how to harness him. William tries to remember every single movement that his Dad does and tries to memorizes them.

Emily smiles, next to him, thinking that William has his proper horse, happy for him butWhy cant she grow up? Why cant anybody see her? William is taller than her and he is growing up. Everyone says it. She cannot change her clothes, her hair doesnt grow up. She doesnt eat. She cant ride a horse. She will never can.

What did the men in white do with her?

"How are you gonna call him, son? " Dad asks, friendly and even happier than his son.

William thinks in all the things that he knows about his real parents. He wants a name that says something whatever- about them. 

" Can I call him Mr. Potato, Dad?" William asks shy, because it is his secret, it is Emilys secret and he knows how important is to keep a secret.

Dad looks a t him surprised but, quickly, smiles,sbaking his head:

"Sure, Son. Its your horse".

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

William is 7 years old and his best friend is Rob. He likes to play with him at school and they both spend a lot of time together. Rob is very imaginative and he loves to think that he is a spaceships Cap that flies over the skies to keep humans safe. William is the scientific commander and he is working on many projects to save the World. One of them is named The Jewel Project: He is elevating a device that will allow him to take out a small jewel that bad aliens implanted in the neck of the moms to know where they are all the time, so the moms gave up their kids.

William had many friends but Rob is the shortest in the class and wears glasses. The other children laugh at him and William cannot consent that. He is his friend and he does not care if the other children tell him that they are two little girls. William likes Rob: he is his best friend. And Emily says that Mom Dana used to have a friend short and with glasses, so William thinks that, if Mom Dana did it, it is ok if he has his friend, even if that mine to lost the others.

Rob always goes to play to William's and cannot see Emily. No one can, but Rob does not laugh about William and his imaginary sister: Rob believes that William tells the truth and that Emily is real. When he felt down playing in the garden, Emily told William how to heal her knee damaged and William did not know how to do it. So he knew because Emily told him. So Emily has to be real.  
Rob has an older brother and last Sunday, his brother looked after Rob. Without their parents knowing, they watched Interview with the Vampire. Rob is worried. 

What if Emily is a vampire? 

The same that the girl in the movie, she cannot grow up. He shares his fears with William and William comes back home thoughtful and frightened. Mom asks if something bad happened to him at school and he just shakes his head trying not to cry. He has to talk very seriously with Emily.  
When they finish dinner, he walk in to his room. Mom is washing-up the dishes and Dad is changing a wheel. Emily waits for him sitting on the bed, smiling and with her blond hair shining like a little Sun. Like the girl in the movie.

"Emily ... Rob says he saw a Vampire movie. Vampires drink people's blood and kill them".

"That's ... awful" Emily said horrified.

"Are you a vampire?" William asks. Emily looks at him, wide-eyes, and shakes her head.

"No. I've never killed anyone," she says confused and upset: she feels insulted.

"But you have to be a Vampire, Emily" William says, raising his arms "You can't grow up! I've known you since I was born and you don't grow up. Never! You cant! And you cant eat, can't sleep, nothing!" 

"No! I'm not a vampire!" Emily shouts, standing up angrily. William is red because of his anger. Emily has never lied to him.

"You are!" He shouts, moving his hands up and down. At that moment, the rug wrinkles under his feet and William falls down on the ground. He moves his head and looks at Emily, who whispers:

"You ok? "

"Why did you throw me down?" William says while he stands up. Emily looks at him as if she does not understand him:

"I didnt touch you and I didnt touch the rugI didnt do a-n-y-t-h-i-n-g"

"You did it! William shouts angrily. The rug wrinkles again under his feet. Emily looks wide-eyed, frightened.

"It's you!" She says, surprised "When you scream the rug moves".

William shakes his head.

"You're a vampire and you didnt tell me" He says again and runs downstairs, crying and hiding his head on the lap of Mom, who looks at him in pity and worried because William does not want to explain why he is crying. Mom thinks maybe he knows he is adopted now.

That night, Emily returns to William's bedroom and they both speak. They decide that Emily is not a vampire. They also decide that William can move rugs with his mind.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

There is a new girl at the school. Her name is Mia, she is eight years old, like William, and she has long black hair and big brown eyes. Her father is from Oklahoma, her mother is a Cherokee native. They came to Arkansas looking for a quiet place for Mia to grow up. Mia's father is the village's new vet. Mia's mother takes her daughter to play at William's house one afternoon and William is very happy: Mia is the most beautiful and nice girl he has ever seen.

When they get into the room, Emily is sitting on the bed waiting for her brother and her new friend to start playing: she is a little jealous because she cannot play but she is satisfied with looking and laughing and imagining that she plays with them.

Mia looks at the bed scared.

"William ..." she says in a frightened voice.

William looks at her, without knowing what's going on, and Emily shakes her head in surprise. Mia is looking into her eyes.

"There's a ..." Mia tries to speak but does not get the words "a ... ghost here".

Emily jumps out the bed and shouts:

"I'm not a ghost!" She says angrily "I'm a girl!"

"Quiet Emily" William says and turns to Mia "you? ... Can you see her?" Mia nods, terrified. William and Emily smiles. 

Both take long time, almost an hour, to convince Mia that Emily is a good girl and that she is William's sister. Mia takes almost an hour to convince them that Emily is a ghost: Mia has seen ghosts before, in Oklahoma. That's why they moved.

At night, Emily and William cannot sleep. Emily cannot remember when she died and cannot believe she's a ghost but Mia's words make sense. William, to entertain himself, moves books from the shelf to the desk and then puts them back on the shelf with his mind. He is very good at it. Dad opens the door and a book falls on his feet because he has distracted William. Dad looks at him frightened, thinking what happened.

Emily and William are worried. Maybe it's not okay for them that someone would know their secrets.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

Mia looks like a good girl so William and Emily tell her everything about Dad Mulder and Mom Dana. Mia says that her father has a computer where she can see everything that happen in the world, with something named Internet, so they go to Mia's to play and turn on the computer: it's better than the one in school. Mia types "Fox William Mulder" and discover that he is an FBI agent who is participating in a case to find a missing agent and a Medium is involved. William and Emily cannot be happier: Dad Mulder is an FBI agent. They find out people in Internet who say he was the best investigating paranormal cases. Nobody knows where he lives since he disappeared in 2001.

"Maybe he was looking for you," Mia says. William tries to content his tears. They see a picture of his father in black jacket and white shirt and Emily says:

"It's him!" And William starts to cry silently.

Mia types Dana Scully and they find that she is a doctor in a Hospital. Internets people say she was skeptical and worked with Fox Mulder. Nobody knows where she lives since she disappeared in 2001.

"They were looking for me!" William says excited, happy and sad at the same time. Mia puts her arm over his shoulder: she also has tears in her eyes.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

William and Mia are together in the yard. The afternoon is quiet and dark. The wind is still a bit cold and they are 10 years old.

"Where are Emily and Rob?" Mia asks.

"I asked them to stay at home today " William says slowly, brushing.

" Why?" Mia asks surprised. 

"I have to tell you something" Mia looks at him, smiling. William has grown up. He is the tallest guy in the class. His eyes are baby blue and his hair has a kind of cherry and brown color that Mia loves. And he is the best guy she has never met: confident, kind, generous, sometimes stubborn but always ready to help to everybody. 

"I have to tell you thatI... I spoke with my Dad and he told me that, when he first ask my Mom to be his girlfriend, he gave her a little poppy. I... My Dad didn't want to buy me a poppy for you so... " William takes a small box from his right pocket" There is a ladybird here" he says with shy eyes "For you. You want to be my girlfriend?". 

Mía looks at the small, silvered box. She has seen ghosts. She plays with a ghost every day. And she knows that the ladybird inside the box is probably dead. But she loves William. She extends her hand, takes the box and put it in her pocket. 

"Yes, I want" She says smiling. 

William looks at her trainers: they supposed to be pink but are brown and dirty because they are the trainers that Mía uses for to play in the yard. 

"Good" He says without voice. They spend a few minutes quiet, without to know what to say. Finally, Mia closes her little body to William and he feels scare and nervous. She is very small compared with him, so she looks up, directly to his eyes and he put his lips on hers, only a second. His heart is going to stop in that second. 

After, he takes Mía's hand and both run to the house to play. 

William can't be happier. Just like Mia is. 

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

Mulder and Scully are sitting at the porch, looking at a navy blue sky plenty of stars. Scully is thinking that William is 12 years old and that she is fed up of the life that Mulder and she have together: Mulder acts like he does not love her anymore. Mulder is thinking that he wants the X Files back, his son back and his Scully back. And that he cannot have either of them back. Even the hopeful to find Samantha disappeared many years ago. 

Mulder is not the same Mulder after the spaceship in Oregon.

Mulder looks to his right and he jumps a little, so Scully looks at him scare and wondering what happen. Mulder says

"N... Nothing, Scully" and tries to puts himself together under Scully's focused eyes. 

Emily is looking at him, smiling and wearing that baby blue dress that Scully bought for her for her funeral. Mulder knows is Emilys ghost, so he and Emily wait patiently. When Scully fall asleep, Mulder help her to get the way to the bed and he comes back to the porch. The little blonde girl is there, waiting for him, smiling and with a different eyes than when he first met her: her soul has grown up somehow but not her body.

"Hi Emily" Mulder says slowly.

"Hi" She replies shyly. Both look at each other wondering what to say. Finally, Emily starts:

"Mia says that I'm still around because I can't find my way to go. She says that I have to do something in this World and then, come back home with my adoptive parents. They are waiting for me but I can't see them". 

Mulder nods, almost smiling.

"Usually, lost souls that are still in this World have something to do, but often, they dont know what they have to do. Do you need help with that?" Mulder says like if he were talking with a baby instead than with a ghost "I think Mia is right. Is she a ghost too? A Medium?". 

Emily nods:

"She is William's girlfriend".

Mulder jumps and open his eyes like crazy:

"William? My William? " he asks, almost without voice. 

Emily nods. 

" I'm looking after him since he was born. He is very tall and Mía says that he has the biggest blue eyes that she has never seen. He can move whatever he wants with his mind: books, tables, cars... But only Mía knows it. He has a horse and he doesn't like carrots. He is my brother and I told him about Mom Dana and about you". 

Mulder cannot help himself and cries, so Emily seats next to him and wait. 

Mulder asks her millions of questions and Emily speaks and speaks and speaks. She says to Mulder that, one day, Thomas Johnson said to everyone in the school that William was adopted and that the Van de Kama were worried for William and they were so sad, but William told the that he knew and that he loved them. She says how William learned to ride the horse and that Mr Van de Kamp is teaching him how to ride the van even if he is 12. She says everything about William and Mulder cries and smiles at the same time. 

"I'm going to look always after him" she finishes. 

Mulder nods, with a strange feeling of happiness and sadness. 

"That's why you can't go, Emily, because you're looking after my son. You will go when he will be safe, completely safe". 

Emily looks at the dark sky and nods. 

"I know, Dad Mulder. One day, he will be with you both and I will wait for you somewhere". And she disappears. 

When he is alone, he walks inside the house and seats on the sofa. He thinks that has lost almost everything but Scully, but he knows he is losing her, little by little, because he could not forgive her for to give up William. She did not have any options. She still has a implant in her neck. Still. And still, she is with him. 

Mulder looks at the TV Screen, a black screen where he can see himself and he cries. 

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx 

To be continued in Chapter 3...


End file.
